The Tokyo Conference also
requests an increase in participation rates in higher
education and asks that appropriate strategies be adopted
for increasing the participation of disadvantaged groups,
who must be encouraged to undertake higher degrees and
enter academic and graduate employment. Similar efforts
are also needed to encourage the participation of ethnic
minorities.

Article 3: Equity of Access

d. Access to higher
education for members of some special target
groups, such as indigenous peoples, cultural and
linguistic minorities, disadvantaged groups,
peoples living under occupation and those who
suffer from disabilities, must be actively
facilitated, since these groups as collectivities
and as individuals may have both experience and
talent that can be of great value for the
developing of societies and nations. Special
material help and educational solutions can help
overcome the obstacles that these groups face,
both in accessing and in continuing higher
education.

Introduction

This module focuses on students
with special learning needs such as the gifted and the
handicapped/disabled. The module emphasises strategies that can
be used by the teacher in a higher educational institution in
promoting access, participation and achievement of students with
special learning needs.

After completing the module, you
should be able to

describe how teaching and
learning in a higher institution can be made friendly for
students with special learning needs;

ensure full participation of
this group of learners in class work, laboratory work and
field work; and

state equity considerations
that should be underscored in teaching this group of
higher education learners.

UNIT 1

Introduction

ost often, people ask "What
is Special about Special Needs Education?" or "What
makes Special Needs Education Special?" Special Needs
Education is special because of the consideration it gives to the
factors that make learning possible for some learners, easier for
others and optimum for everyone who have unusual learning needs.
The consideration include:

Special methods of
instruction

Special materials of
instruction

Educational placement
alternatives.

Attention is turned to these three
areas in this Unit.

At the end of this Unit, you
should be able to:

explain the concept of
Special Needs Education; and

identify the uniqueness in
developing curriculum for the special student.

The issue of special needs
education in higher institutions of learning has become a major
problem and yet ignored. Very often, people tend to think special
needs education begins and stops at the primary school level.
Yet, it is in institutions of higher learning that the major
challenges are found. Let us reflect on some of the problems that
are encountered in colleges and universities.

Naidu is a 25-year old
science education student in the University. Naidu was
not only emotionally attached to his father, they were
both playmates. His father was the breadwinner of the
family. Two years ago his father died in a motor
accident. This devastated him and he could not cope with
the emotional trauma. He became depressed and withdrawn.
He became short-tempered and aggressive at the simplest
provocation. He started staying away from classes and at
the end of the term failed his exams and was asked to
withdraw from the university.

Mogobe is an asthmatic student. She was
always irritated by the dust from the chalk and dust in
the class during lectures. She stayed away from classes
most of the time. This affected her performance. Michael
is epileptic. He remained withdrawn. He was afraid to
attend classes taking place upstairs. He was always
worried about having an attack. The uncertainty of the
unknown for example when the next attack will take place
 the humiliation the attacks bring with them. This
affected his learning, academic performance and social
life.

Paul was a Home Economics
student. He was always among the top five in the class.
Pauls performance was consistently and gradually
dropping. It was later found out that Pauls
girlfriend had left him for another boy. Paul could not
take it. He became depressed and withdrawn. This affected
his class performance. He received serious counselling.
This helped him to come to terms with his disappointment.
He later picked up in his class work.

Jane is an albino. She was
admitted into the University to read B.Sc. Chemistry.
Despite her outstanding performance in the Cambridge
School Certificate Examinations, she could not do well in
Physics and her vision was very poor to read Chemistry.
She became more frustrated. She was not allowed to make
use of her tape recorders in the class because that was
seen by students and lecturers as cheating. She was
advised to withdraw or change courses. A survey carried
out in a particular university with nearly 9000 student
population shows that there were over 53 students with
variety of disabilities needing special services. These
disabilities include visual, hearing, hypertension,
asthma, hayfever, emotional, allergy, spine, ulcer,
physical, respiratory, HIV/AIDS and poverty problems.

The conditions described here are
quite common in most institutions of higher learning. These
students feel worried about their conditions and how they will
cope with their academic work especially if the support services
are not available.

The need for this description is
to help teachers to understand situations which are usually
common in their classes that affect learning and teaching. Very
often, there is a misconception of what special needs education
is all about and who receives it. Special needs education is
tailored for students who may be experiencing difficulty with
their learning due to identifiable or unidentifiable factors. Let
us examine the subject in a little more detail.

The Concept of Special Needs
Education

Special Needs Education is the
education of individuals who have learning difficulties because
of some handicaps resulting from visual, auditory, emotional, or
other physical disabilities due to circumstances of birth, mental
or physical health patterns or accident in later life. It also
caters for the Gifted and Talented. Special Needs Education
can be looked at as a way of treating people as individuals. The
gifted and talented are provided with programmes to encourage
them to go at their own pace while those with physical problems
which affect their education are provided with such programmes
that take care of their individual learning needs with the goal
of making them enjoy and benefit from available education. In
other words, Special Needs Education focuses on the individual
who experiences difficulties with his or her academic and
adaptive behaviour as well as general learning problems.

The behaviour deficits shown by
such people are:

hearing impairment

visual processing
problems

speech and emotional
disorders

attention problems

social withdrawal

absenteeism

hyper-activity (in
the case of the Gifted).

Students who exhibit these
problems can be found in all institutions of higher learning.

According to Abosi (1999),
special groups of students can be defined as those
students who experience difficulty with their learning due to
physical, psychological, health, school and/or environmental
factors. This group includes both gifted and non-gifted students.
For example, a gifted/talented learner could
experience learning difficulties if not catered for. This could
result in the development of subversive behavior.

Special needs education is part of
general education which treats people as individuals, adapting
relevant equipment, personal curriculum and methods to overcome
both identifiable and unidentifiable problems that obstruct
learning. Lecturers should become more sensitive towards a
heterogeneous student body. There is a wide range of special
needs in the same classroom today. Some of the concerns of
special needs education in higher education include
the fact that some students experience difficulties in learning
and thus not make the grade. It is important to establish
institutional support services that can accommodate problems.

Every individual has his or her
characteristic way of learning and each disabled and gifted
students learning patterns may or may not relate to
conditions of disability defined in medical terms. In the
teaching and learning situation, it is important to stress that
no method is best except that method which effects a positive
change in the individual.

For proper understanding of other
terms that have direct bearing with the issue of persons with
special needs, it is necessary to further distinguish between
DISABILITY, HANDICAP and IMPAIRMENT.

DISABILITY

This involves health deterioration
or a stable impairment of body functions which restrict the
functional organs. It is usually caused by diseases, heredity,
accident and trauma after effects of deficits. They include:

absence of an arm or
both arms.

defects in the legs.

spine.

eye or ear.

other functioning
body parts.

When a victim of an accident
becomes crippled and could not walk, he or she is disabled, but
if such a person can get around to do what he or she desires, the
person is not necessarily handicapped.

IMPAIRMENT

This is the condition of mental,
physical and sensory deficits that range from mild to profound.
It is an abnormal deviation, defect, damage or malformation in
the structures affecting the organs of the body. Disabilities and
Impairments without appropriate intervention can result into
permanent handicap.

HANDICAP

This refers to obstacles,
difficulties a person encounters on account of a particular
visible or invisible disability. If a person can no longer carry
out normal duties or does so with a lot of difficulty because of
a disability, such a person is handicapped. Handicap connotes
barriers, difficulties or problems that place limitation in
ones way to perform normal activities. The effect of a
physical disability may result into problems of perception,
co-ordination, as well as mobility which may limit the
participation in the optimum teaching and learning as in a class
of non-handicapped persons.

Categories of
Disability in Higher Education

C.O. Abosi

There is need to highlight some of
the disabilities that are generally present in higher
institutions.

Speech and Language Disorders

Some students have difficulty in
communicating with their lecturers and peers. They find it
difficult to participate in oral activities. Friend and Bursuck
(1996) maintain that when a student experiences extraordinary
difficulties in communicating with others on account of causes
other than maturation, a speech and language impairment is
implicated. Speech and language impairment are usually associated
with articulation problems. Students with articulation problems
experience trouble in production of speech sounds, omit words,
have difficulty in fluency and in some cases, students stammer.
In extreme cases, students with speech and language disorders
have difficulty in language production.

Emotional Disturbance

Students with emotional
disturbance are usually withdrawn. This kind of behaviour affects
their learning. Students with emotional disturbance experience
difficulty with interpersonal relationships  they find it
difficult in making friends since they are always on their own or
easily get irritated when teased by mates. Loss of a close
relative could cause this situation especially in death or broken
homes.

Hearing Impairment

Hearing impaired students are
students who experience difficulty with their hearing. This
problem may be mild such as in hard of hearing students. Students
with this difficulty have problem hearing or listening to
lectures from the back of the class. Hard of hearing students
could be assisted by providing them with hearing aid. The other
extreme condition is deafness. Students who are deaf have
difficulty understanding spoken words in the class even when they
have been provided with hearing aid. Students who are deaf could
be assisted in the class by total communication approach. Total
communication involves sign language, finger spelling, gestures,
lip-reading, auditory training, use of flash cards and displays.
A deaf student definitely needs the services of sign language
interpreter in the class.

Visual Impairment

Although it attracts more
attention and sympathy visual impairment poses the least
difficulty in learning and teaching situation provided the basic
provisions have been made. Such provisions include braillers,
tape recorders, tapes, typewriters, eureka, mobility and
orientation training mobility materials, magnifiers, etc.
Students with visual impairment are students who experience
difficulty in their vision. Visual problems can be divided into
two major groups. These are students with visual handicap for
example, blindness, low vision and partial sight. Students who
are blind or low vision need to be trained in braille reading and
writing. They also need tape recorders in the class to record
their lecturers which they can transcribe later into braille.
Students who are partially sighted can fit into normal class
using magnifiers and the lecturers write in bold print. The other
group of students with visual impairment are students described
as suffering from errors of refraction. They may be short sighted
(myopia), long sighted (hypermetropia), or with blurred vision
(astigmatism). Such students are provided with such aids as
concave, convex lenses as the case may be.

Physical and Health Impairment

These are the commonest problems
in the universities and colleges. Physical and health impairment
include students with orthopedic condition or inability to move
about. Other conditions include students with neurological
disorders such as epilepsy, spina-bifida, cerebral palsy, sickle
cell anaemia, respiratory disorders (tuberculosis), asthma.
Students with orthopedic conditions are provided with wheel
chairs. Modifications are usually needed with the buildings, for
example the provision of ramps are required. Students may also
require muscle support materials that will assist them when
writing. Some physical and health conditions would need education
and enlightenment of the generality of the students to encourage
change of attitude or adoption of positive attitude in helping
students who may be having such conditions as epilepsy,
tuberculosis, cerebral palsy, asthma, etc. Experience has shown
that students generally avoid them.

Other Students Requiring
Special Needs Services

The concept of special needs
education has recently been broadened. In a UNESCO (1999)
workshop held in Dakar, African expert group broadened the
concept of special needs education to include marginalised group.
The marginalised group include students with HIV/AIDS, abused
students, poor students, gifted students, abandoned children and
children on the street. The issue of HIV/AIDS has become one of
the most sensitive discussions in the universities because the
prevalence of the condition has become a source of worry not only
to the students but also to the administrators. The HIV/AIDS
manifests itself in different forms. A fourth year student
suddenly started losing her sight. The University got worried and
rushed her to the hospital. After series of tests it was
discovered that she had AIDS. Students who have AIDS or who come
from extreme poverty background, or who have been abused by step
parents find it difficult concentrating on their studies.
Students who fall within this category are usually referred for
counselling using multi-disciplinary approach.

It may be necessary to establish a
unit to deal with the teaching and learning needs of learners
with special needs. Teaching and learning materials may need to
be specially developed for these learners. Lecturers would, for
instance, need to consider classroom and laboratory activities
for learners with special needs. Examination material may also
need to be modified. It may also be necessary for more time to be
allocated for these students in paper and pencil examinations and
tests. Institutions will need to review the extent to which their
infrastructure for the special learner is friendly enough to
accommodate learners with special needs. A resource center can
enable the provision of appropriate equipment, e.g. Braille
machines, embossers, hearing aids, canes, tape recorders, empty
tapes, wheelchairs, crutches, etc. This center could serve as a
link between special needs learners and the various other
teaching and learning facets of the institution.

The issue of African beliefs and
traditions in so far as it affects societal perceptions was also
discussed. It was believed in some societies that disability is a
curse or punishment, or that `albinos are spirits. As a
result, learners with special needs suffer rejection and/or
isolation from the rest of the student body. This impacts not
only the learners themselves but on the way in which
lecturers/teachers relate to them. There is a need to sensitize
higher education educators (and learners) regarding these
learners irrespective of the size of the class. This will entail
observing the characteristics of various disabilities, where
established and make referrals to appropriate societal sectors.

Excerpted from:

Abosi, C.O. (1999). Special
Needs Education in Higher institutions in Africa. Paper presented
at the Regional Workshop on Teaching and Learning in Higher
Education, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South
Africa, September 13-16.

UNIT 2

At the end of this Unit, you
should be able to:

critically review the process
of selecting and implementing learning activities for
students with special needs in higher institutions; and

describe appropriate
educational settings that can be effectively used in
educating students with special needs.

Use the following observation
instrument to assess the special needs of the students in your
class. Retain the information collected for preparing your
remediation measures.

Things to observe in the classroom

Does the student
bring materials too close or too far from the
eye?

Does the student
frown or bends forward in order to hear?

Does the student
remain passive and withdrawn?

Is the student
restless?

Does the student
perform poorly in some or all the courses

Does the student look
unhappy?

Does the student
daydream?

Does the student
absent him/herself from classes?

Expected
Competencies of the Teacher of Learners with Special Needs
Education

The teacher of learners with
special needs education needs should be able to;

-use and interprete a
wide range of individual assessment measures.

-
make and record objective
observation of students behaviour
in a wide range of structured and
unstructured situation.

- design,
implement and evaluate individual
programme plans based on
assessment and observation.

-
use skills in teaching community
living by exposing students to
gradually

increasing
levels of demand in the real
situation rather than in the
classroom.

-
possess the skills for working
with parents like applying a
range of counselling skills
needed in the homes.

-
competent in working with other
professionals and in learning and
acquiring beneficial information
for the students.

-
understanding of general
curriculum and working capacity
to make the special adaptations
needed for developing and
implementing programmes for
handicapped students.

Students who have some
form of disability or the other are a rapidly growing
population on campuses of higher institutions. Though
it is difficult to obtain accurate figures, between
two and six percent of higher education students have
physical or learning disabilities that require
compensatory classroom teaching.

Ask your students
to clarify any special needs. At the beginning of
each semester, you might make a general announcement:
"Any student who feels that he or she may need
help in connection with any sort of physical or
learning disability, please speak to me after class,
make an appointment to see me, or see me during my
office hours." When you meet with a student,
explain the course requirements and ask what
intervention would aid the student. Students are
usually their own best advocates, and they know the
techniques and adaptations that best suit their
needs.

Remember that
disabled students are students first, disabled
second. It is natural for able-bodied people to
feel hesitant or uneasy when first meeting people who
are disabled. But disabled people are neither more or
less emotionally fragile than able-bodied people.
Thus you needn't worry about hurting the feelings of
a student who is blind by mentioning the word see.
Students who are blind "see" ideas or
concepts, just as students who are deaf
"hear" what someone means and wheelchair
users "walk" to class. Offer physical
assistance only if a student requests help or if the
need is immediately obviously.

Be flexible about
attendance and promptness. Students who use
wheelchairs may encounter physical barriers in
getting to class on time. Other students may
sometimes feel fatigued or have difficulty
concentrating as a result of their disability or
their medication. Try to distinguish students'
physical problems from apathetic behaviour.

Be sensitive to
"non-visible" or "hidden"
disabilities. Three principal types of
disabilities may not be immediately visible:

Learning disabilities
hinder students of average or above-average
intelligence from easily and dependably
processing various types of information. Dyslexic
students, for example, have a perceptual deficit
that prevents them from unerringly interpreting
sequences of letters or numbers. It is important
to realize that learning disabilities are not a
reflection of a student's intelligence, physical
or emotional health, or cultural or socioeconomic
background. In general, using a variety of
instructional modes enhances learning for such
students, as it does for all students, by
allowing them to master material that may be
inaccessible in one particular mode.

Chronic disabilities
(diabetes, seizure disorders, cardiac or
respiratory conditions, lupus, cancer, AIDS) may
interfere with stamina, attention span, and
alertness. The attendance and performance of
affected students may be erratic, and they may
need flexibility in the scheduling of
assignments.

Observe seating needs.
Students who use canes, crutches, or walkers appreciate
having a chair or desk that is close to the door. Access to
these seats should be flat: no steps, no uneven surfaces.
Wheelchair users need flat or ramped access, and classroom
tables or desks must have enough clearance for them to get
their legs underneath. Laboratory tables and computer
consoles should be set up so that wheelchair users can
comfortably reach the equipment.

Follow good teaching
practices. Many techniques that will help students who
have sensory or learning disabilities will also benefit all
the students in your class. For example:

Open each session
with a brief review of the previous session's
material and an outline of that day's topic.
Conclude each session with a summary of key
points.

Emphasize new or
technical vocabulary by presenting it visually
(on the chalkboard, an overhead slide, or a
handout) as well as orally.

Describe all visual
examples (board work, demonstrations, props). As
you work at the board, instead of saying,
"Adding this here and dividing by that gives
us this," narrate what you are doing:
"Adding all scores and dividing by the
number of scores, gives us the mean."

Face the class when you are
speaking. Deaf or hearing-disabled students who read lips
cannot follow the lecture or conversation when your back or
head is turned. If you are writing on the board or narrating
a desktop demonstration, try to avoid talking when facing the
board or the desktop. Remember that, at best, people who are
deaf can read only 30 to 40 percent of spoken English by
watching the speaker's lips. Augment their understanding by
using facial expressions, gestures, and body language.

Arrange for classroom
participation or an alternative activity. Students who
cannot raise their hand to answer or ask questions may feel
isolated or ignored in class. During your first private
meeting with such a student, ask how he or she wishes to be
recognized in the classroom. Some students will want to be
called on; others may prefer to meet periodically with you
before or after class to ask questions about course content.

Listen attentively when a
student with a speech disability is speaking. Do not
finish a student's sentences or interrupt. Never pretend to
understand if you are having difficulty doing so. Instead,
repeat what you have understood and allow the student to
respond.

Give options for oral
presentations, if needed. Oral presentations may pose
difficulties for students who have speech disabilities.
Students who wish to give their presentation without
assistance should be encouraged to do so. But some students
will want to give the presentation with the help of an
interpreter, and others may want to write out their
presentation and ask an interpreter or another student to
read it to the class.

Curriculum Concerns for the
Special Learner

Curriculum concerns for students
with special needs is designed to meet the unique needs of those
who may be basically disabled or gifted.

The following areas are to be
emphasised.

Self-help skills.

Social adjustment in
the home and neighbourhood.

Economic usefulness.

Academic skills

A useful curriculum therefore,
must be built upon the results of a comprehensive analysis of the
particular students to be taught. The analysis of the curriculum
should also consider the following:

Forecast the
knowledge, skills and attitudes that will be
useful when formal schooling ends.

Should accurately
diagnose each students present level of
knowledge and ability.

Instruction should
begin where students can earn the greatest
benefit.

Ensure good
instructional setting with its accompaning
physical and emotional environment.

Regardless of whether instruction
is delivered in residential or mainstream settings, there must be
a concern with its efficiency in terms of how well the special
child is acquiring needed skills. Some factors that are necessary
in providing appropriate instruction for the special child
include:

The curriculum must
delimit specific goals and objectives that permit
a continuous and smooth progression in skill
attainment.

The curriculum should
be thoroughly understood by the teacher and
whenever feasible be designed by the teacher.

The manner in which
various curriculum components are presented to
the child should be monitored closely to
determine whether changes in presentation could
facilitate achievement.

The emotional climate
present in the instructional setting should be
positive, warm and encouraging.

Methodology in Special Needs
Education

The following general methods are
characteristic of Special Needs Education:

work is planned so
that each student is rewarded by self-interest
activities after completing an assignment.

individualisation of
instruction is stressed.

work is characterised
by less structure and more self-selection on the
part of the student.

learners are
motivated by achievement, hence, work is geared
to success and chances of error are minimized.

teachers
encouragement and support are indispensable, in
order to motivate the children and raise their
expectations from time to time.

exciting materials
likely to generate anxiety in the students are
neutralised or removed.

sensory avenues are
used and remedial corrective approaches are
stressed.

there is less
academic stress, and evaluation is carried out in
a relaxed atmosphere.

manipulate materials
and games so as to have great value for classroom
activity.

group projects have
an important place and students are allowed
self-selection of groups for instruction, project
or play.

audio-visual aids,
such as films, recorders and others are liberally
used.

competition is
reduced to a minimum and each student is allowed
to pass judgement on his own work.

Learning environment
must be condusive and suitable to special needs
of the disabled.

Removal of
architectural barriers that may inhibit movement
of students who use wheelchairs and inability
devices.

Provision of
entraces/ramps in all buildings for
accessibility.

Ensure the student is
trained in the use of all devices and
technological apparatus useful to the process of
academic learning.

Teacher should
understand the unique needs of the individuals
with special needs.

Teacher should act as
catalyst in developing understanding of the
handicapped student with their normal
counterparts.

Integrate adjustments
needed in assignments or standards in the regular
classrooms.

Ensure that students
have all educational materials in the appropriate
media.

Instruct the students
in academic subjects and activities requiring
adaptation and reinforcement as a direct result
of handicapping condition.

Individualised Education
Programme (I.E.P)

The primary intent of Special
Needs Education requires educators to focus on the needs of
individual student with disabilities. The individualised
educational programme (IEP) is the most important aspect of the
focus for it spells out what teachers plan to do to meet an
exceptional students need while the plan must be approved
by the students parent or guardian. The process comprises
six phases which are:

Refferal: The
teacher or the parents make a referral of a
learner with special needs to professionals for
necessary remediations.

Instructional
Planning: Planning of a suitable programme
for the student. The planning entails
establishing goals and objectives of the
programme stated in measurable terms (short term
or long range goals). Specific instructional
methods and materials to be used are also
included. The method may include team teaching,
modelling, performance contracting, counselling
services etc.

Placement:
Parents and guardians can make suggestions as to
the kind of placement they want for their child.
In any case, they have a right to object to any
recommended placement.

Instruction:
Instruction involves implementation of the
educational programme and it normally entails
methods of instructional techniques specifying
the expected number of hours to be spent with the
student by the teacher or the child with
non-handicapped students.

Evaluation
Procedure: It entails continuous assessment
of the student to determine the extent of
progress and to identify new or additional
educational needs.

It can be carried out at intervals
of time such as every four or six months. Through this the
educational setting objectives of the plan and teaching
strategies are all re-examined.

Educational
Needs of Disabled Students

Sabou SARR

Larousse Dictionary of Psychology
defines the word need as the state of an individual in
relation to what is necessary for him/her. But the most common
definition in literature describes the concept of need as the
difference between a current situation considered to be
unsatisfactory or imperfect and a desired situation deemed ideal,
satisfactory or perfect.

Examples : the need to eat, drink,
entertain oneself, etc.

The different connotations
of the term : There are different types of needs :

physiological needs
determined by living conditions

educational needs

psychological needs

social needs.

The needs we have just listed are
essential and of vital importance. Other needs connected with
deprivation such as ignorance, poverty, etc, are referred to as secondary
needsbut they do not compromise existence.

In the sphere of education, the
terms felt needs and expressed needs are used in
describing the learners needs. Hence, needs assessment
constitutes the first stage used by the teacher in preparing and
planning a training programme for a given target group.

The learners needs are
contingent on space, time and his/her environment. It is for this
reason that needs assessment is considered as a continuous and
regular activity and not as a unique operation that is carried
out once.

Classification of needs

The student
in higher education today and the
institutional environment bear
characteristics that are different from
those of the 1960s and 1970s. Thus, the
needs of students in higher educational
institutions in contemporary Africa are
different from those of the colonial era.

These needs should
be classified according to the following
parameters :

Cultural identity and
environment

Types of curricula

Identification of
objectives  cultural content -methods

Participatory
approach (University institution/students)

Identification of
educational objectives of co-operation agencies
and societal needs.

Special Needs Education
refers to the type of education given to persons having
some sort of learning disability attributed to eye, ear,
emotional or other troubles caused by delivery
conditions, various forms of mental or physical health or
accidents incurred in the latter part of life. It also
covers gifted (exceptionally gifted) and talented
persons.

The types
of deficiencies are :

Hearing problems

Eye troubles

Speech impediments and
emotional troubles

Inattention

Social isolation

Absenteeism

Hyperactivity (in the case of
gifted persons).

Teachers assigned to train
individuals with special needs should :

manage an increasingly
limited educational system that allows for and encourages
competition

take account of the rapid
increase in knowledge and technical innovations in a
context where teachers competence constitutes a key
element of the success of advanced training.

prepare better to meet the
present-day challenges

constantly pursue refresher
courses since efficiency is synonymous with competence

use and interpret a wide
range of tools for self-assessment

make and record objective
observations about students performance in a
variety of structured and non-structured situations

design, implement and
evaluate projects under individual programmes based on observation
and evaluation

demonstrate
competence/expertise in the identification of objectives,
performances, definition of objectives, job analysis and
programme formulation

use skills in community
education to expose students at levels presenting an
ever-increasing demand for a real situation rather than
in the classroom

have the potential to work
with parents, for instance, in using a variety of skills
to provide the necessary guidance and counselling
services to the groups

develop skills in
intervention with specialists as well as in learning and
acquisition of useful information for students

understand, in general, the
curriculum and working capacity permitting the adaptations
necessary for the formulation and implementation of
curricula for handicapped students.

Enhancing Learning Environment
for Students with Special Needs

For teachers in higher education,
the following suggestions are helpful in facilitating learning of
students with special needs:

The educational environment
should be conducive, suited to the specific needs of
handicapped students and to the integration process

The need to remove
architectural barriers that could limit the movement of
students using wheel chairs.

Training students, using all
appliances and useful technological tools

Audio-visual aids such as
films, tape recorders, etc, should be used without
restriction.

Ensure that the students are
granted the same rights in the common law examinations :
Part 1 (DUEL), First Degree, Masters Degree and
Doctorate.

The institution should
conduct examinations with special conditions for
handicapped students :

extension of the duration of
examinations : 1/3 of the time allowed

technological tools : braille
 transcribing machine

cultural contents similar to
those for the able-bodied students.

Excerpted from:

Sarr, S. (1999), Higher education
in Africa and students with special learning needs. Presented at
the Regional Workshop on Teaching and Learning in Higher
Education, University of Cocody, 10-14 May.

Least Restrictive Environment

Education of the handicapped in a
Least Restrictive Environment provides limitless schooling
situations which does not limit their experience and integration
with the non-handicapped in the society. The education of the
handicapped which include institutionalised and integrated
systems should provide each child with a least restrictive
environment based on the nature of the need of the student.

Residential Schools: The
system provides boarding facilities for the handicapped.
Sometimes, the residential schools become a dumping ground and
thus there is the trend for de-institutionalising the system.

Integration: It refers to
the practise whereby handicapped persons are educated with their
non-handicapped counterparts in regular schools. Other name for
integration is mainstreaming. It is cautious to realise that all
handicapped persons cannot be effectively integrated.

Normalisation: The systems
allows for the same rights and opportunities as available to the
non-handicapped persons.

Services: For effective
programming in the least Restrictive Environment, all necessary
help and assistance should be rendered to avoid further
limitations. Where there are needed devices they must be
available to assist the system.

Rehabilitation This is a
way of restoring someone back into his/her normal or former
condition in order to get useful to self and the society by means
of psychological, medical, vocational and therapeutic training.
Since disability can distrupt the individuals abilities to
practice their vocation, effective rehabilitation can change the
situation.

Support Services

Maximum result, efforts,
effectiveness and efficiency could be achieved through the
co-operation of Special Educators and non-professionals. The
services of these non-professionals are required in Special Needs
Education because of its inter-disciplinary nature. Supportive
personnel are professionals in their own fields but provide
services needed for optimal achievement of the stated objectives
of Special Needs Education. No single professional and or
non-professional is exclusively responsible for handling all
areas of health, physical, cognitive, affective, social and
psychological spectrum of Special Needs Education. Among the
supportive services required in Special Needs Education are:

Social workers.

Medical Practitioners.

Parents.

The Psychologists

Occupational Therapists

Speech and Language Therapists

Physiotherapists

Neurologists

Opthtamologists

Guidance Counsellors

Braillists

Sign Language Interpreters

Readers for the Blind

Training for Employment
Opportunties

Higher education training
programme for the Gifted, disabled and their handlers should be
tailored towards self-employment as well as employment in the
public and private sectors so as not to make the huge investment
a waste. To this end, there is need for:

Establishment of a placement
centre to explore possibilities of employment for both
undergraduates and graduate handicapped persons.

Granting soft loans to
trained/professional handicapped for purpose of
self-employment.

Technology in Special Needs
Education

It can not be over-emphasised that
there is increasing awareness about the role information and
technology play in the education of the handicapped. With the
knowledge explosion and rapidly advancing technologies, much
impact has not been felt by handicapped persons in developing
countries. In other words, those handicapped persons have not
obtained the full benefit of information and technology
breakthrough. The educational technology in Special Needs
Education as it relates to each handicapping condition is
classified as follows: (a) Visual media (b) Auditory technologies
(c ) Audio-visual equipment (d) Mobility Aids. Textbooks,
Magazines and Journals and other Print or Electronic materials
are essential for students to update their knowledge.

For the Blind/Visually
Handicapped

Braille machine,
Braille duplicator and Typewriters are some of
the most crucial equipment necessary in the
education of the visually handicapped. They are
to facilitate the production of Braille books,
Braille Mathematics, Shorthand Braille code,
Chemical formula and equations, Nigerian Braille
code, Braille Computer code, Music Braille code
and talking book.

Smellen Chart: It is
designed to screen for visual problems.

The Optacon: It is an
electronic service that convert print materials
to tactile images.

Electronic
Calculators: The devices can assist in
Mathematical calculations and adapted to produce
speech or to speak.

Abacus and Taylor
frames: They are used to teach the visually
handicapped mathematics.

Guide Dogs: They are
trained to guide the blind.

Talking Calculator:
The calculator provides an auditory display.

Canes: Collapsible
and Electronic canes are helpful for effective
mobility.

Reading Computer
Machine: A computer designed to convert prints
into speech when it is placed face down on a
scanner.

Thermoform Machine:
It is used to make copies of brallion papers.

Audio-tape: Tapes are
used for dictation or recording of lectures.

Hearing Impaired

Audiometre:
This is an instrument used to measure the hearing
level of an individual. It is graduated in
frequency and intensity. There are types like
Diagnostic, Audiometre, portable Audiometre,
Tympanometer.

Hearing Aids:
They are devices designed to aid hearing in an
individual with hearing problems.

Group Hearing
Aids: These are designed for more than one
person. It is for auditory and speech training.

Speech Trainers:
They are acoustic devices used to teach children
speech.

Sign Language books
are very important in the education of the
Deaf/Hearing Impaired.

Computers:
They have greater potential for assisting
teachers in the delivery of instructional
programmes for students with special needs.

Computer assisted programmes have
helped students with special needs and freed the teacher from
some difficulties on information dissemination.

Technological Aids for the
Physically Handicapped

Electric and manual
wheel chairs: They are used by students with
limited strength for their mobility.

Braces and Artificial
Limbs: The former are used to strengthen the body
while the latter replace portions of the body.

Crutches: They are
made of wood and metals to provide support during
movement.

Electrical
Typewriters: They are recommended for students
who experience difficulties when writing with the
hand.